How to waste a PR opportunity
The heating oil industry strikes again; or rather the heating oil suppliers of Yorkshire. I got a call from a senior and well known personality at Radio 4 asking me to provide the names of reliable companies in Yorkshire to meet with and speak with about heating oil, the price and pensioners.
Simple enough you would think….basically heating oil has gone up nearly 40% in 12 months and the media want to know what suppliers are doing about easing the burden on pensioners. I called 2 companies, one near Wetherby and one near Harrogate. They are both large providers of heating oil to both town and country users. I told them that a well known journalist (household name almost) was coming to see them. I was offering them the chance to get their name on Radio 4 at the correct time of night when pensioners listen. How nice to be able to get your company name heard by all those lovely prospective customers! But you would have thought that I had asked them to strip naked on TV.
Excuses for doing absolutely nothing ranged from “We aren’t fully prepared for that kind of meeting” to “giving him a lift back to the railway station is asking a bit much isn’t it?” Anyway, one of them finally agreed to look after him.
My experience with these naive individuals was rather liking watching rabbits staring at car headlights. I understand the journalist had a good day, in spite of but not because of. It was also very sunny on Wednesday! Is saving money and cost cutting ruling everything? Imagination, creativity and spotting an opportunity has been stifled over recent years.
Brilliant, I will survive!
Till soon,
TWC